Rio de Janeiro Nov 24 (IANS) A stunning late strike from Felipe Vizeu gave Brazilian football giants Flamengo a 2-1 victory over Colombia s Junior in the first leg of their Copa Sudamericana semi-final here.
Colombia international striker Teofilo Gutierrez opened the scoring in the 21st minute by tapping in at the far post after a Yony Gonzalez cross on Thursday reports Xinhua news agency.
The equaliser came in the 76th minute when veteran defender Juan met Miguel Trauco s corner by rifling a bullet header into the bottom left corner.
Vizeu sent the partisan crowd at the Maracana Stadium into raptures when he latched onto a Willian Arao header with a sublime volley that left goalkeeper Sebastian Viera with no chance.
For Flamengo the result was soured by a suspected collarbone injury that forced goalkeeper Diego Alves off the pitch in the 20th minute.
The Brazilian club s medical staff said further scans were needed to determine the extent of the injury.
The decisive second leg will be played at Junior s Estadio Metropolitano in the Caribbean port city of Barranquilla next Thursday.
The winner of the Copa Sudamericana will earn a berth in next year s Copa Libertadores South America s top club competition.
--IANS
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